Part 10 (1/2)

”And where does the road to St Quentin turn off from this one?”

”It is the next turn, to your left,” said Frank, truthfully

”Good! Then I will be going Go hoet into trouble if you stay hereabout”

He vaulted upon his horse, and the nextthe hard road, and, looking after him, could see the sparks as the iron clashed with the flint of the road's surface

”That was easy!” said Frank, with a gasp of relief

”He was alone,” said Henri

”Carrying despatches, I expect,” said Frank ”He wouldn't tell us where he was going, naturally, but I bet he's looking for those other troopsDangerous work, too But I wonder where he caet into trouble”

”Suppose we hide the bicycles near here and go along through the fields? Don't you think that will be better, Frank?” was Henri's cautious suggestion

”Yes, I suppose it will, though it will be slower, too”

”Of course But if we are going to be stopped all the ti it”

So theytheir wheels so that they would have a chance of recovering them if they came back this way They marked the spot not only by land to dot the sky now

”Therehere,” said Frank ”And if there is, this place ain If there is a battle the trees will go, and the fences, and all the houses for if they are not burned deliberately, the shells will destroy them”

”Look, Frank, what is that?”

Henri had turned and was pointing now to the north There a streaht shot into the air, then dropped, and left only its reflection But in a moment others joined it, and the whole sky to the north was brilliantly lighted It was like a display of Northern Lights, only nearer and even hts, of course,” said Frank ”They can throw theainst aeroplanes and dirigibles, too At night, you see, there'd be a chance for aeroplanes to fly very low and do a lot of daround?”

”Not always They have ood many aeroplane motors now, so that they don't make any more noise than a quiet autoood thing about the searchlights We knohich way to go Coht The more I think of it, the better it is not to be on the roads Here in the fields we're a lot less likely to run into stray parties And I'd just about as soontrouble, theyas the Germans would They wouldn't believe we really had despatches”

For a tiress The roar of artillery fire in front of the that they were ainst their ears, rew used to it, and could hear other and ht insects and the occasional hooting of owls

”I don't hear the rifle fire,” said Henri, after a time ”Only once in a while, that is Why is that, I wonder? Are the big guns drowning it?”

”No Because if that were the reason, ouldn't hear it at all I think they don't do that at night It's just a case of trying to find the places where the ene up a steady fire of shells to drive the all day, you know, and even soldiers have to have some rest They have to eat and sleep or they can't keep up the work”

They crossedin a straight line as nearly as they could figure their course When they had decided to join the Boy Scouts, both had studied the stars, since a knowledge of the heavens is one of the , and they found what they had learned very valuable now Thus they could keep their bearings, though owing to their desertion of the roads, Henri confessed that he had very little idea of where they were

”Along the roads one has landh here, over and over again My father used to drive this way very often in our auto,” said Frank, cheerfully ”All we've got to do is to follow the old German maxim, 'March on the cannon thunder!' That was their one rule in 1870, you know and a very good rule it proved too”